News / Infocus

Education in south Mexico

Sunday, 10 January 2016 9:20 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 10 January 2016 9:20 AM ]

A teacher aims stones at members of the Federal Police in Oaxaca State, Mexico on November 28, 2015. (AFP Photo)

An ongoing battle over control of education in the south of Mexico has seen death, violence and continuous strikes as the country’s new administration attempts to drag state education into the 21st century.

The Seccion 22, an Oaxaca state institution, has come to represent the cause of indigenous people in the state, fighting their battles throughout the country as they seek autonomy from Mexico City. Training their members in radical protest tactics and government pressure, the teachers have gained reputation as the most violent and extreme activist group in the country.

Yet as they champion the indigenous cause, state education has fallen by the wayside. In a state where 20 percent of the population is illiterate, the next generation attends just 80 of the 200 assigned school days every year.

Is there any hope for education in southern Mexico, or is the fight of the teachers destined to consume everything is touches?

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